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SOLEIL: the first very large research facility to sign the French National Charter for Research Integrity

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On 4 March 2020, Jean Daillant, Director General of SOLEIL, formally signed the French National Charter for Research Integrity.

The official signature of this charter follows the vote by the Board of SOLEIL held on 17 December 2019. This signing took place in the presence of Joëlle Alnot, Director of the French Office for Scientific Integrity, three members of the Board of SOLEIL - Jean-Michel Chaput, Maria Faury and Hervé Desvaux - as well as Michèle Sauvage, former scientific director of SOLEIL and emeritus director of research of the CNRS, appointed as Adviser for Research Integrity for SOLEIL from 1 January 2020.

Formal signature of the French National Charter for Research Integrity by Jean Daillant with, from left to right, Jean-Michel Chaput, Maria Faury, Joëlle Alnot, Michèle Sauvage and Hervé Desvaux

'The first French very large research facility to adhere to the National Charter for Research Integrity, SOLEIL thus reaffirms its commitment to produce and guarantee excellence in research', declared Jean Daillant, Director General of the French synchrotron radiation facility, in his speech. Each year hosting over 4500 users from both academic research and the industrial sectors, the SOLEIL Synchrotron is indeed a major player for the construction and transmission of knowledge.

Jean Daillant, Director General of Synchrotron SOLEIL

The National Charter for Research Integrity aims to define the criteria for a rigorous and ethical scientific approach, the guarantee of a relationship of trust between science and society. Structured into seven main principles(1), this charter applies to all the staff and associates involved in experiments and/or research, as well as to the users of the SOLEIL synchrotron.

Since her nomination on 1 January 2020 as Adviser for Research Integrity, the mission of Michèle Sauvage, the former scientific director of SOLEIL and emeritus director of research for the CNRS, has been to:

Evaluate the current situation;

Assess practices and propose training and procedures;

Identify associated risks;

Communicate and raise the awareness of researchers and management with respect to new obligations.

Michèle Sauvage, former scientific director of SOLEIL and emeritus director of research of the CNRS, Adviser for Research Integrity

These objectives coincide with those of the French Office for Research Integrity (OFIS). The central role of this cross-disciplinary structure, created in March 2017 within the High Council for the Evaluation of Research and Higher Education (Hcéres), consists in providing support to the scientific community for the promotion of integrity. Among the actions undertaken, Joëlle Alnot, director of the OFIS, gave a special mention to the creation of a map of the available training for research integrity as well as the organisation of symposiums concerning the different aspects covered by the charter, including, for example, 'research integrity and communication'.

Joëlle Alnot, Director of the French Office for Research Integrity (OFIS)

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(1) The respect of legislative and regulatory compliance; the reliability of research work; communication; responsibility in collective work; impartiality and independence in evaluation and expertise; collaborative work and the cumulation of activities; training.See the 'Complementary resources' heading opposite